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Thursday, May 17, 2012

the end is in sight!

It is hard to believe that there is less than a month left of the school year. You have almost made it! May and early June for first-year teachers is often the reflection phase in the cycle of teaching. You begin to reflect over the year, take stock in the successes and the failures, the changes made in management, curriculum, and instruction that influenced student achievement and development.

If you haven't done so already (and before you get settled into a well-deserved summer break), take some time to craft a new vision for teaching for next year. Consider:

What was my overall impression for the year? How did I enjoy teaching, the school, the students?

What were my relationships like with: students, parents, administration, fellow teachers, support staff?

What was successful for me and for the students in my class(es) this year? Why was it successful?

What concerns me about the progress the students in my class(es) made this year? What else concerns me?

What can I try differently next year?

What professional development would help me as a teacher?

You probably have a list of things you want to rethink over the summer, and these reflections might help focus what you want to accomplish over the summer. Setting new goals and creating a new vision for your classroom can really help you get excited for a new school year, even when you're exhausted from the current year.

Every teacher, no matter how experienced, can benefit from continual reflection, and these questions can get you started. I have some reflecting to do myself!